Who Let the Dogs Out!
by DakotaCelt
Summary: The Dogs of Station 51 and their humans are attending a Canine Good Citizen class on behalf of the LACoFD. Let the dogs play!


**[Author's note: This little vignette comes from a conversation on a fan board and the fascinating question of "what do our dogs think of us" and its relation to the guys at 51s. Enjoy!]**

**Who Let the Dogs Out**

John Gage sighed as he pulled his white Land Rover into a parking spot at the animal clinic and training center. He had misgivings about why fire department employees had to take their dogs to obedience classes. He was wondering why their dogs had to be representative canine good citizens and they did not work at the fire department. They were pets, creatures who expected to be petted, fed, and provide comfort when a soul was wounded. His Border Collie, Lexie, lay in the rear waiting for the vehicle to arrive at its destination. She let out several short yips when it finally stopped.

Johnny popped the latch on the back of his Land Rover and was greeted by Lexie's black and white face licking his as she bounced around waiting to be let out.

"Just a minute girl, let me get your leash on." Johnny shook his head as the dog continued to whine to be let out. "Man, you're antsy tonight! Get your mind off that Malinois!"

Johnny gave her leash a small tug, "Come 'on girl, Let's go!" She leaped to the ground and Johnny gave the door a shove to close it.

Lexi barked when she saw her friend, Boomer, a Bernese Mountain Dog, get out of his human's car. the dog walked alongside his human, Roy DeSoto, as they approached Lexi and the dark-haired paramedic. Lexie wagged her tail as Boomer's human reach down and patted her on the head. Lexi sniffed the dog's nose, greeting him with a lick. Roy sometimes wondered what dogs thought of their humans as he watched them interact.

"Well Roy, you ready for this exercise?" Johnny let out a sigh of exasperation.

"Ready as I'll ever be." Roy offered as he gave Boomer the command to walk.

The two paramedics and their dogs entered the training center where they were greeted by a brown-haired young woman dressed in jeans and a floral top.

"Good Day! I take it you're with the fire department. I'm Brigid Murphy and I'll be working with you and your dogs today."

Brigid smiled as she looked at her clipboard to mark them off. "I see we're still waiting for four more people."

Johnny and Roy acknowledged the greeting and made their way into the training area. Brigid suggested that they let their dogs loose into a holding area until the others arrived. Both men took the leashes off and let the dogs play in the holding area. A chill went down Johnny's spine when looked off to the far corner of the arena and spied cages of chickens lining the wall. Thinking to himself, he hoped Lexie did not see the chickens.

Roy grinned when he saw Johnny's face turn white. "She's still trying to herd the chickens or is it the other way around."

"She herds them into the coop each night. Her fascination with chickens is odd...," Johnny mused shaking his head. "I... I don't get it. I thought Borders were supposed to herd sheep, not chickens."

Roy and Johnny continued to talk and were soon joined by Captain Hank Stanley and his Belgian Malinois, Sarge; Mike Stoker and his Golden Retriever, Samson; Marco Lopez and his Gordon Setter, Lupo; and the late arrival Chet Kelly with his Basset hound, Enos ambled in behind them.

The dogs greeted one another by sniffing, wagging tails, and offering a playful paw. As the dogs played in the holding area before going to the training arena, the men talked quietly near the edge.

"Johnny, I thought you bringing your malamute?" Mike asked as a hint of disappointment filled his voice.

"I did originally plan on bringing Dusk until he injured his leg the other day." Johnny replied. "My cousin is watching him so he doesn't chew off his cone of shame and aggravate the injury."

"That's too bad," Stanley added. "I was looking forward to seeing him."

"It is... So I brought Lexie, instead." Johnny watched Lexie in the distance staring down the Basset hound.

"John, when did did you get Lexie?" Mike asked while watching the dogs play in the distance.

"Found her at a rescue shelter about a year go. Great dog. Her and Dusk get along quite well."

Lexie growled as she held her tail straight, glaring at the tri-colored dog sniffing at her rear end. Watching the exchange, Boomer came over and towered over the hound as a signal to back off.

"Johnny, why is Lexie growling at my dog like that?" Chet snorted.

"Well...I would be growling too if you had your nose up my butt!" Johnny smirked back at the Irishman.

"Isn't sniffing a female dog something males are supposed to do?" Chet retorted.

"Not when her boyfriend's in the area!"

"Roy's dog... that big black thing standing next to them." Chet snorted as he tried to stifle a giggle. Roy looked over at Chet, mildly annoyed at his remark.

"Yep."

Marco and Mike tried to keep their laughter in check and not inflame the exchange between Johnny and Chet.

"Now it looks like they're laughing at him," Chet griped.

"Well... he, like his master, can't land a woman," Johnny smirked.

"Would you two twits knock it off!" Captain Stanley snorted as he shook his head.

"Sorry, Cap!" Johnny and Chet parroted back.

While the guys continued talking, the dogs circled one another to establish an order in the group.

"Hey Shorty, back off!" Lexie growled with intense dark brown eyes glaring at the Basset Hound. "Gee... show some manners, man!"

"Show the lady some respect, Shorty!" Boomer grumbled as he leaned over the errant Basset hound. "Didn't your human teach you any manners!"

"So how can she be a lady?" Enos asked.

"Well, She treats her friends with respect," Boomer snorted.

Sarge, Samson, and Lupo stood back and watched the ongoing exchange between Lexie, Boomer, and Enos with great interest. Thinking to themselves that the three of them could be as entertaining as their humans.

"Besides Enos, your human is always picking on Lexie's," added Boomer. "She's a nice friend, just like her human."

"Her human is neurotic!" Enos snorted.

"Your human is immature and always picking on mine. Mine is kind and loving," Lexie countered "He found me in a sad place where other doggies were left alone and gave me a home. That's nice and I'm appreciative for that!"

"But you're hyper," Enos defended.

"Sheepdogs need to have quick reflexes to react when herding!" Lexie retorted indignantly. "Our quick reflexes make us appear hyper. I'm even nice to cats. I heard you chase them, Enos."

"So, what if I chase them. If they invade my territory, they get chased," Enos defended as he wagged his tail.

"Would you three knock it off!" Sarge snorted. "Our humans are watching us."

"Boomer's right, Enos. Lexie's human is nice." Lupo added. "Yours teases people."

"Boomer's human even pets me. He's a nice person as are the little ones that live with him. The little ones even play frisbee with me." Lexie interjected.

"Lupo, yours and Samson's humans are good cooks," Boomer added. "I've heard my mine talk about their cooking."

"Why do you think I sit by the kitchen table," Samson crowed. "There might be a wayward morsel that may fall in my direction."

"Or the stove," chimed Lupo as he wagged his tail. "Mine has been known to drip on the floor."

"Little humans are also useful for a snack. They like to share and make you happy," Boomer added.

"Come on! We're being summoned by our humans." Sarge grumbled to his friends and started to head to the door of the holding area. The other dogs followed Sarge to where the humans were standing and and waited patiently as leashes were attached to their collars.

Brigid gestured to the six men to follow her with their dogs to the main training arena.

Captain Stanley gave Sarge a gentle tug to fall in behind Johnny and Roy with their dogs. Sarge stepped smartly besides his human to show he had class and snap to be a captain's dog. Samson with his human, Mike Stoker followed behind. Lupo pulled at his leash to signal to his human, Marco Lopez, that he wanted to catch up with his friends. Chet followed behind with Enos ambling along on his short, stubby legs.

Brigid opened the door to the training arena and motioned for them to enter. The men followed Brigid's instructions and walked into the arena with their furry charges. The arena was large grey and green room that was divided in two sections. The first area was used for obedience training with markings on the floor and chairs along the wall. The men were instructed to line up near the wall. The second area was set up for agility training. Sarge and Lexie looked over towards the climbing ramps and running tubes with great interest.

"Now, wouldn't that be fun," Sarge suggested.

"It sure would be fun to romp in that!" Lexie whined. "Great way to stay in shape and run the human."

"I agree... wonder if they will let us play. Mine needs to be exercised again." Sarge commented as he looked over the running area.

Samson looked over at the training area. "Can I join you two?"

"Yep! You sure can, Samson," Lexie yipped.

"Our humans need to be kept in shape. They get lazy on Saturdays and Sundays in the fall," Boomer added. "Some strange game with a weird shaped ball and they start yelling at a box and occasionally throw things at it."

"I agree!" Lexie chimed in. "I've seen my human react quite often during such times and yell at the object in a tone of voice I've never heard. It's even funnier when mine has other humans over and they're all yelling at the thing. Dusk and I like to hide sometimes during such actions. They can be scary jumping around and yelling."

"Some of the humans even leave the house because of my human yelling at the colored thing." Sarge interjected.

"I agree Lexie, their behavior is very odd during this time," Boomer observed. "The little humans are even told who they can't yell for."

"Can I join?" Enos asked as he was wondered what they were talking about.

"I don't think you would make it around the course. My human can't even keep up with me and he has long legs." Lexie snorted as she rolled her eyes at the Basset hound.

"Boomer, did you see the chickens over there? They'd be fun to herd." Lexie observed.

"Yep, and I know you'd have fun. Amazing how you get them back to their house," Boomer stated.

"Not that difficult once you figure out who the ring leader is. Then you continually circle, coax, circle, coax and then contain them in a holding pattern as you drive them to the house." Lexie glanced over at Boomer.

"Chickens have ring leaders?" Enos asked as he wondered what they were talking about. "And why are we talking about chickens?"

"Shush you twits!" Sarge grumbled. "You guys talk too much."

Brigid looked at the six men standing before her and smiled. The dogs stood beside their humans patiently as they waited for the command to do something. Brigid ran the humans through several tests of obedience that each dog passed willingly. The tests including being approached by a stranger and being groomed by a friend or a veterinarian. They were also observed on how they behaved around dogs they were not familiar with on a walk.

The men were instructed to leave the dogs sitting on the floor and walk away. The dogs were tested when they were left in the hands of a trusted person and their human was away in another room. A metal dish was dropped and the dogs remained undeterred by the noise. Brigid pulled a baby stroller out and instructed each of the men to walk toward her with their dogs. They walked up to Brigid and sat quietly on their haunches as pleasantries were exchanged. The dogs walked back to their spot on the floor and laid down with their leash nearby.

"This is a real drag! I'm booooooored!" Lexie sighed as she watched her friends go through their paces. "I'm glad that my human gave me a good brushing before I came. A lady must always look her best."

"I had to get a bath after my human caught me in the flower bed. It was freshly watered and the cool ground felt good." Boomer added. "At least the little humans did bathe me and offered treats for good behavior."

"I agree... This little exercise is starting to get old. I'm itching for a run in the tunnel over there. That's looks far more exciting." Samson sighed back.

"I'm all for a little excitement also," Lupo added.

"Did you see that, Sarge? Enos ate the dropped food and walked away from his position. He's not having a good day." Lexie observed the female human working with Enos and his person.

"Yep... I agree with Lupo and Samson. I could go for a little excitement right about now. Glad we all passed that lesson. I'm bored also." Sarge yawned as he watched the activity surrounding Enos.

Lexie's head soon darted towards a corner of the arena when she spotted a grey tabby cat slinking along the wall. Her ears pricked upward as she watched the cat intensely moving along the wall and wondered what it was up to. Her eyes darted from the corner where the chickens were located back to the the corner where another human was trying to sneak up on the cat. Samson and Lupo soon followed her gaze to the wall and wondered why the cat was in the arena.

"Boomer! look over there along the wall at the cat moving towards the cages." Lexie whined.

"I see it... I doubt the cat is part of the test we're taking for being good doggie citizens." Boomer smarted back.

"I doubt the cat is part of the test either, but it could be interesting if it went over by the chickens and upended a few cages. The upended cages mean loose chickens." Lexie commented as she watched the cat intensely. "I might get to herd yet, today."

"I want to see that." Sarge stated. "A sheep dog herding chickens. This I've got to see. Hmmmm... things could get very interesting, very quickly."

"Me too!" Lupo added as he jumped into the discussion. "If the chickens do get out, the rest of us can help by trying to keep the humans busy, so you can herd."

"Yep... the cat will keep Enos busy, Boomer can block the entrance, and the rest of you can help with them." Lexie offered the plan to her fellow canines. The Border Collie continued to train her eyes on the cat as it neared the cages.

Boomer was about to offer a comment when his attention was drawn to the other side of the arena. The growing noise of panicked chickens from the approaching cat caused some the cages to break loose from the pile and tumble to the floor.

A loud crash was heard as the sound of meowing combined with loud clucks and shrieks echoed in the arena. Suddenly chickens were fluttering and strutting around as the sound of crashing metal cages echoed though out the complex. The arena soon filled with 50 errant chickens of varied colors as they strutted around on the other side of the wall. People could be heard yelling to others in the complex to come and help. A number of people came running into the arena to try and round up the chickens.

A gray tabby cat jumped over the wall with a person in close pursuit to try and catch it before any further havoc could arise. As the cat neared Enos, it hissed loudly at the Basset hound sniffing it. Enos growled back at the cat and the hissing grew louder. The cat arched its back and swiped its paw at Enos's nose. Enos barked and took off after the cat though the open door, with Chet and another person in hot pursuit of the two animals. As they exited the training area, chairs could be heard crashing onto the floor and the sound of a baying hound echoed through the complex.

A black and white blur was soon flying across the arena floor and flying over the wall. Lexie landed on her feet and crouched low as she watched as the chickens quiet down from their upheaval and release from the cages. She carefully walked around the outside edge in order to keep them calm. Boomer went over near the opening and laid there to keep the chickens from escaping. Lupo, Samson, and Sarge ran around the humans to keep them from chasing after Lexie.

"Lexie!" Johnny yelled as he watched the dog come face to the face with a chicken. "Get back here!" The dog ignored her human and continued to face the chicken down.

Roy walked up to Johnny shaking his head. "Roy, get over near Boomer to help keep chickens in the training area. Lexie's in herding mode." Johnny pleaded as he tried to get Lexie back. Roy acknowledged Johnny's request and went over by Boomer to catch any errant chickens trying to get over the large Berner.

"Hey pal anything we can do? I've never seen a working sheep, errr chicken dog." Captain Stanley mused as he watched Lexie working the chickens back.

"Not really." Johnny stared off distantly as he watched Lexie work. "Just watch your dogs so they don't distract her."

"I can see to that." Captain Stanley placed a supportive hand on Johnny's shoulder. He walked off from where Johnny was standing and instructed Roy, Marco, and Mike on what to do. He did not see Chet and suspected he was still chasing his wayward Basset Hound.

"It's interesting to watch her." Marco added. "I've never watched a herding dog before working animals."

Johnny looked over and acknowledged Marco's comment. Thinking to himself, perhaps this was a learning point for them all that animals do have worth beyond that of being a pet. Lexie was proving that to him as he watched.

Brigid walked up to Johnny. "Anything we can do to help Lexie? She's doing a remarkable job."

Johnny grinned with embarrassment at Brigid's comment. "Not much. Just have someone at the end to close the cages. Sorry about this, but herding is in her blood."

"No problem, once a herding dog, always a herding dog. Besides, they'll be rounded up far quicker with Lexie, than if the staff did it." Brigid offered warm smile to defuse Johnny's embarrassment.

Lexie carefully walked around the chickens to get them away from the avenues of escape. She continued to pace behind them back and forth driving them towards the cages. The chickens remained in place as she worked two errant chickens near Boomer back towards the flock. Roy watched in amazement at the concentration in Lexie's eyes. He gave Boomer a gentle pat as he remained calm while Lexie worked near him. Others in the arena stopped and watched Lexie work. Two individuals carefully made their way to the far wall where the cages were stacked and Lexie was working the chickens toward them.

"Sarge, she is rather remarkable. It's amazing how she concentrates." Lupo commented.

"It's quite remarkable. I've never seen a dog herd chickens before and they seem to be heeding her directions." Sarge added as he continued to watch the action.

Mike and Marco continued to watch in amazement as Lexie paced around the birds calmly coaxing them into a group and pushing them forward to the cages. She continually eyed a salt and pepper colored bird that tried to break out from the group. She circled around the flock several times to defuse the breakout attempt.

"Cap, amazing how a dog can do that. I never knew Johnny had a trained dog like that." Marco shared while he stood next to Captain Stanley. "It's rather remarkable.

"I agree Marco, it is remarkable and she senses when one is breaking from the group. It's amazing to watch." Mike offered. "My dog just fetches and plays with balls."

"I understand she likes to catch frisbees also." Marco offered. "Johnny mentioned that earlier."

"Frisbees?" Captain Stanley shook his head as he tried to wrap his head around that.

"I guess she's a natural at that and agility training. He lets the frisbee fly and she jumps up and catches it. She doesn't like balls, I guess." Marco added.

"She's never liked balls... finds them boring, I guess." Johnny shrugged his shoulders at their discussion. "She does like to catch Frisbees. It's rather remarkable the contortions she puts her body through to catch them. She even got Dusk into catching Frisbees. I haven't regretted one day that I've had her. Both her and Dusk have been loyal and loving companions."

Roy walked up and caught the tail end of the conversation. "I'll agree that they're loyal, Johnny. Both are great dogs. The kids love to toss the Frisbee to all three dogs, though I think Lexie enjoys it far more."

Johnny nodded at Roy's comment and grinned. "I'm gonna to head onto that side. Lexie nearly has them all back into the cages. She'll need a pat of reassurance that she did a good job. That she has. I'm suspecting she would to have run in that agility course."

Brigid caught the end of Johnny's comment. "She's more than welcomed to have an run in it. She's earned it. Her friends are welcomed to join her."

"Hey Sarge, did you hear that... Lexie and her friends get to run in the playground," Samson crowed.

"Let the fun begin!" Sarge whined.

"I've never done an agility course before. This could be fun." Lupo looked over at his friends and then at some humans setting up the equipment.

"Boomer, you joining us?" Samson asked as he wandered over to the large Berner resting on the ground.

"No, I'm not agile enough for an obstacle course, though I may give it a try. Lexie's good at it." Boomer added.

Johnny nodded his thanks to Brigid as he started to walk towards the opening and gave Boomer a pat on the head and the dog responded in kind with a wagging tail. Just as Johnny headed into the arena, Chet returned with his dog in tow and wondered what was going on, as everyone was watching Johnny walk towards his dog laying the floor near the chickens.

"What's going on?" Chet asked has he kept a close eye on his dog.

"You missed it Chet. Johnny's dog, Lexie just herded the chickens back to the cages and now he's walking up to get her. She did a great job and it was quite fascinating to watch." Marco nodded as he watched Johnny give Lexie a pat on the head for a job well done.

"Really? A sheepdog herding chickens?" Chet shook his head as he tried to picture that scene. "And the chickens remained calm through the whole thing"

"Yep.. It was amazing to watch how she circled and coaxed them. She never rushed them and it was if she hypnotized them." Captain Stanley watched Johnny in the distance as he started back towards them with Lexie and the happy look she appeared to have on her face.

Lupo, Samson and Sarge stood near the opening to greet Lexie as she came back from her herding exercise. "That was amazing, Lexie." Sarge offered his congratulations to his friend and the others concurred.

"Thanks guys! A lady likes to hear that from time to time from the guys." Lexie commented as she greeted her friends.

"Nice job Lexie! You did a great job my dear friend." Boomer offered as he gave her a lick on the nose. "I hear you all get to run in the agility course. The humans will get exercised."

"Only if you try to do a little Boomer." Lexie whined as she encouraged her old friend and was soon joined by the others in encouraging Boomer to join.

"Okay... I'll try." Boomer said in playful defeat as he knew his friends had him cornered. "I don't think Enos will be joining us... He still has his lessons to finish."

The men and the dogs finished watching the people set up the agility course for them to run. The course included tunnels, weaving poles, and ladders to climb. Lexie whined as she waited impatiently.

Johnny gave Lexie playful pat on the side. "Ready girl?" He was rewarded a wagging tail and whine that she wanted to go play.

Johnny led Lexie to the starting point and told her stay as he moved off into the center of the arena to show the others how it was done. Lexie focused on Johnny as she waited for the command. "Lexie... GO!"

With that cue, a blur of black and white was seen flying through the tunnels and scaling the ramps and ladders in a short amount of time as Johnny did his best to keep up with her with signals and calls of where she had to go on the course. She weaved through the poles and flew through the second tunnel before flying to his arms at the end of the course.

"John, that was amazing time and almost Westminster level. She finished the course in 53 seconds." Brigid crowed.

"That was fast Lexie. I doubt mine will be as fast." Sarge stated as he headed to the beginning of the course with his human.

Sarge was up next and did the course slightly slower than Lexie but just as flawless. Lexie barked her approval at Sarge's performance. Lupo and Samson also ran the course and their humans followed and encouraged their furry charges to complete the run. The men watched as the dogs performed the course flawlessly. It left a person to wonder who was having more fun: the humans or the dogs. Barks and wagging tails were in order as each one finished the course.

Lexie placed her head against Boomer to push him onto the course. Samson and Sarge also coaxed the large Berner onto the course. Granted they all knew because of the dog's large size, he wouldn't make it through all elements of the course, but his friends wanted him to at least try. Roy shook his head as he watched the dogs push Boomer onto the course.

"Go for it Boomer! Give your human a good run. He needs it!" The dogs cheered him from the sidelines.

Boomer actually surprised himself as he made it through the first tunnel as it was larger than the one at the end and up one of the ladders and down again. He weaved through the poles and bypassed the the smaller tunnel with he is human in close pursuit behind him.

"Great job Boomer!" Lexie offered her friend a gentle head butt.

"Hmmm, maybe I can practice on the little ones I live with." Boomer mused.

"There ya go! Great job Boomer." Samson offered as looked over at Boomer.

Enos finally came up to the line and ambled his way through the course as Chet encouraged him to try the ladder but he bypassed the intimidating looking contraption and opted for going through the tunnels and pole weaving.

The dogs and humans decided to give the course one more run before leaving. As the dogs raced through the course, their humans watched in amazement at the fun their dogs were having. They almost appeared to be smiling. Perhaps there is a bit of joy in letting the dogs out to play. Roy watched Lexie and Boomer play and wondered to himself if that is the message our pets were trying to give us. Play like a dog and live a little.


End file.
